Kingdom Hearts III The Past Reborn
by Cheekyte
Summary: Sora, Riku and Kairi are dragged back into action, when a new threat disrupts the balance by resurrecting Organization XIII and the Heartless. Admist all this confusion, Leon must face the past that he left for dead. Slight A-U...Read n Review!
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: Yea, i don't want to get sued, sooo..i own nothing that has anything to do with kingdom hearts, final fantasy VIII or disney... Kingdom Hearts is owned by square enix and disney ... :)**

**Kingdom Hearts III-The Past Reborn**

**Chapter 1**

As soon as Leon stepped off the gummi ship and onto the shores of Destiny Islands, he couldn't help but feel out of place. The island carried a warm air with it, a feeling that was there not only because of the tropical climate. It was a peaceful place, one free of hostility and darkness. But Leon could never stay in a place like this for too long; his life had always been surrounded by combat. His ability to fight and protect kept him going through the worst of times. It was his one constant; it seemed there'd always be a reason to fight. Still, Leon appreciated places like this. They were beautiful havens that deserved to be kept secluded from the darkness lurking outside its borders.

Leon looked toward the orange sky and his thoughts strayed to a subject he always tried to avoid. He mentally kicked himself to get back on track. He couldn't afford to get distracted.

Finally he stepped forward allowing himself to continue with his mission.

* * *

"So I was sitting here, at this very spot actually, when suddenly it all came back, I remembered you!" The young girl exclaimed. Her flipped out hair bounced as she nodded enthusiastically. The young girl, Selphie, was sitting at the edge of the docks with two very good friends. They swished their feet around in the warm salty ocean, and watched the evening sky change colours. "And then, I knew right away that you weren't crazy Kai."

The red head girl sitting beside her punched her playfully in the shoulder. "Selph! You were the one telling everyone I was fine when my parents thought I had created imaginary friends."

"Kairi, you're probably my closest friend. If you really were making up imaginary friends, I wasn't about to abandon you! I mean you needed a real friend too!"

"How's this for imaginary friends?" and Kairi dipped her hand in the ocean sending sprinkles of water splashing over her friend.

"Kai!" Selphie cried. "You'll get my uniform wet!" Pouting playfully, she sent water back her way.

The once forgotten boy sat next to the two girls on the dock, his hair spiky as ever. As he watched them, he thought about his journey as the keyblade master, and how great of an experience it was to travel to different worlds and meet new friends…There were so many close calls, so many moments where he could have been erased from existence and memory…

Kairi had always kept his memory alive, even when she didn't know what to call him; she always knew he was out there somewhere. He laughed and smiled with his friends. He was so grateful to Kairi for always keeping his heart safe. And he was so grateful at that moment just to be able to laugh with his friends. Then, a bit of ocean water was sent splashing his way, breaking his thoughts. "Uugh! You'll get in my hair!"

"Oh, don't act like a little water will get that mop to stop defying gravity Sora." Selphie said.

The three teens had left school much later today. Kairi and Selphie were a part of the art club; they were making posters and planning the setup for the skateboard competition, which would be held later that week. Sora was registered to take part in the competition, so he had stayed late to practice. Even though things were back to normal, Sora still felt strange sometimes, not having to worry about saving the world. It was weird how after-school functions now topped his priorities. And every now and then he had to wonder how he found his way back to this point. There he was, living the simple life of a teenager on Destiny Island, when only two years ago, the people of the island had forgot he existed.

"So, Selph, everyone really just forgot about me?" Sora asked, scratching his head in thought after the water-play had ended.

"Yeah," Selphie said, feeling a little guilty that she too forgot about her friend. "It's weird too, looking at you now, I can't see how I ever managed to forget someone like you!"

"What's that supposed to mean?"

Kairi smiled sweetly. "Didn't you know? You're one in a million Sora." Sora melted at her soft eyes and delicate smile. He smiled back at her. _I couldn't agree more Kairi._

"Yeah," Selphie nodded in agreement. "I've never seen anyone with hair like yours! But seriously guys, it's been two years since all that craziness, since you guys came back, and you still haven't told me what happened."

Sora shrugged. "It doesn't matter now, nothing really that interesting happened anyway."

_Like that's not the biggest understatement of the year._ Dry sarcasm that was not Sora sounded within his head. Sora's eyes rolled upward, and he resisted the urge to tell himself to shut it.

"Try me." Selphie smirked. Anyone could tell she was a little annoyed. Kairi especially knew that she hated being kept out of the loop. "I know something happened. Kairi, before you came back you couldn't even draw a stick figure straight, and now you're like one of the top artists in the art club! And Sora, did you go off to some training camp? Because you came back ripped and in better shape than ever!"

Sora turned a little red at the last comment. "It's kinda complicated…" He mumbled, scratching his head.

"Yeah, you probably wouldn't believe the half of it…" Kairi added.

"Half of what?" questioned an older boy with white hair. He joined his three friends, sitting on the dock next to Sora.

"And you too Riku!" A pointed finger came his way. Riku furrowed his brow a bit taken aback from Selphie's sudden forwardness. "What?"

Kairi giggled, "Selphie wants to know about our big adventure."

"Tell her Riku! It wasn't that great." Sora said.

Riku sighed, his face slightly darkened. "Great is definitely not how I would describe it."

"You know what? I think I'm gonna get us some sea salt ice cream, and when I get back the three of you better have some sort of explanation ready." Selphie gleefully smiled. She jumped up and skipped along off the dock.

"So how did this subject come up?" Riku asked, as Selphie disappeared.

Sora sighed. "Selphie asks us about it every chance she gets."

"You know, when you two were gone, she was probably there for me more than anyone else. I think she just feels left out because I haven't talked about it." Kairi said.

"It's not like the things we went through are easy to talk about." Riku said, and Sora especially knew that he was referring to himself more than his two friends.

"Maybe I'll tell her about it," Kairi said "But not tonight, I'm too exhausted to get into a discussion like that." The three of them nodded.

Eager to change the subject, Riku stood up and spoke. "I bet Selphie will need some help carrying all that ice cream over here. I'll leave you two alone…" Riku nudged Sora with his foot and cocked his head toward Kairi, who was too busy gazing into the orange sky to notice Riku's obvious effort to get Sora to make a move. He then lightly jogged off to catch up to Selphie.

* * *

Leon walked along the sand trying to cloud his mind with thoughts of the upcoming war so that there would be no room for anything else. He didn't want to take in the soothing sea breeze or the vibrant setting sun. He didn't want to think about how beautiful she would look if she were with him at that very moment. Her hair would probably blow gently to one side with each breeze that came by. Her porcelain skin would reflect an orange glow from the deep colours of the sky. And she would be carrying that beautiful smile, the one that always softened his heart.

Leon now realized that thinking about all things he didn't want to think about had backfired, and tricked him into thinking about all of it anyway. He looked around him quickly. There was absolutely no one around to witness the tear that had escaped out of the corner of one of his cold blue eyes. He sighed and decided that if there were any place he should permit himself to let his guard down, this would be it. Just for a moment, he sat down atop the sand and let himself smile.

"Rinoa," He said aloud in a whisper. " You would have loved it here."

* * *

Sora watched Riku run off and then turned to look at Kairi. The sun shone on her crimson hair, as she gazed into the sunlight. She truly was one in a million Sora thought to himself.

_Then why don't you tell her that?! _Words of advice from his other half sounded in Sora's brain. Sora rolled his eyes."Let me handle it Roxas!" he whispered to himself.

"What'd you say?" Kairi turned to him.

"Oh nothing I was just…" Sora began, but Kairi nodded and there was no need for explanation. If it were anyone else, they'd think Sora was talking to himself, but it was different with Kairi. Sora, Riku and Kairi all understood each other in a way that no one else on the islands could.

Sora didn't have to go explaining that he had this nobody inside him named Roxas, that liked to make sarcastic comments and throw his two cents into Sora's thoughts and actions, much to his annoyance. Sora didn't question Kairi's brilliant drawings, because he already knew that it was Kairi's way of giving her nobody an outlet, something that brought Naminé joy.

"What did he say this time?" Kairi asked, giggling a little.

"He said the sunset reminds him of the time he spent in Twilight Town, with Hayner, Pence and Olette."

_Liar…_

"Oh…"

There was a long pause as the two teens watched the sun sink deeper into the horizon.

Kairi's voice suddenly broke the silence. "Sora…promise me you won't leave me behind again…"

Sora was bewildered. _Where is this coming from all of a sudden?_ "Kairi, I…"

"Please?" She turned to him, her blue eyes looking into his, close to tearing. Tearing? A second ago she was laughing. The subject of their adventure usually brought Riku to a slightly dark and brooding mood, but Kairi usually didn't react this way. Sora hated seeing Kairi sad.

"That's behind us now, we don't have to think about that anymore…" Sora replied. He was trying to dodge the words she wanted him to say. He couldn't make that promise.

"We both know that's not true Sora." Kairi frowned slightly, not liking his dodge. "You haven't forgot about the letter, have you?"

The letter. The one the king had sent them only a week after they were all back on Destiny Island. It was simple but got the point across:

'_Sora, Riku, Kairi…_

_It's not over yet, always be ready.  
__Hope you're doing well_

_King Mickey_

Sora looked away from her, his voice low. "Then you know I can't promise anything…"

Kairi looked disappointed, but she seemed to understand. She always did. Then her expression softened and she said, "I love you."

Sora had always been terrified of this moment, even though he knew it was coming. But looking at her, he calmed right down. "Kairi, thank you for always keeping my heart safe."

She smiled softly. "Anytime." She laughed. "You should hear what Naminé's saying."

"…Roxas wants me to tell you how I feel."

"Oh, and how do you feel?"

Sora hesitated for a moment and he wondered if he should say what really was on his mind. Despite his nerves he felt ready. Roxas was telling him that it was stupid for him to feel nervous. Looking into Kairi's eyes, he agreed with his nobody because he became completely relaxed.

"I love you too." He said, and then he kissed her.

* * *

Leon was on the move again. He couldn't afford to let himself stray for too long. He had now reached a spot on the island that was bustling with people. It was a small market area with lots of quaint little shops and restaurants. He scanned the area for any familiar faces. Then he spotted the silhouette of someone with wild spikes atop their head. He was sitting at the end of a pier that stretched out into the sea. There was no mistake it was Sora, the very person he needed to find.

As he made his way across the dock, he realized he was with a girl. Not just any girl. This was Kairi, the girl he had gone to the ends of the worlds (literally) to rescue. And they were looking at each with such intensity. He slowed his pace as he watched them get closer and closer to each other …then they kissed.

Leon chuckled lightly; he was not about to interrupt their moment. His mission would have to wait.

He was about to exit the scene when a voice from behind stunned him.

"Excuse me, why are you watching my friends make out?" The voice was so familiar… and even after all these years he could still place the face to the sound.

But it was impossible. The girl he was reminded of couldn't be standing behind him.

Leon slowly turned and was met with a complete shock, because the impossible had just been confirmed.

* * *

Authors Note: Hope you liked it! Please Review...if you like my story, motivate me to update sooner!


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I don't own a thing...**

* * *

Leon stood frozen in place. His mind tried to process what was in front of him but his head was filled with thoughts of denial. _Your loosing it Leon, _he told himself. He had seen it with his own eyes, his world and everyone he loved was swallowed by the darkness. He had spend years trying to let go of everything he used to have, he left those thoughts behind with who he used to be. But the girl standing in front of him was no ghost from his past. She was real, and she was looking as him like he was from another world.

"Why are you staring at me like that?" Selphie asked, raising an eyebrow at Leon's strange behaviour.

_It's a mistake, _Leon thought. _This is just a girl who looks like Selphie…and talks like Selphie._

But there was no mistake. This was Selphie Tilmitt, and she looked exactly the same as the last time he saw her; she hadn't aged a day. She was as young and vibrant as she was back when they were cadets at Balamb Garden, back on their home…before he had ever heard about heartless, the darkness or the even the fact that there were other worlds besides his own.

Even after all these years he still recognized her. He couldn't forget any of his friends from his past even if he tried. Sure, he had buried all his memories of them when he chose to focus on fighting the darkness with the new people he had met, but those memories were never lost. He appreciated each one of his friends for sticking by him, even when he gave them the cold shoulder. He cared about them more then he let on, and even as he tried to forget them, he had never been able to diminish how important they were to him.

When he watched his home being taken by the darkness, he watched all of them disappear with it. That horrible moment had been embedded into his memories like the scar across his face, etched deep into his skin. The darkness had taken everything from him.

But Selphie hadn't been swallowed up inside the darkness. She stood before him, giving him more hope then he could find in a long time.

Selphie took a few slow steps backwards away from the gaping man. "Okay seriously, you're really creeping me out…"

She had no idea who he was, not a clue. He was looking at her with a stunned expression, the bridge between his eyes creased as he tried to figure out what to say to her. She just looked him like he was crazy, her face displaying serious discomfort. It made for one awkward reunion.

"Selphie, I know I offered to help, but how did I end up carrying all four ice-cream bars?" Riku asked. He had been walking behind Selphie more slowly so he didn't drop any of the ice cream. Finally, he caught up to her, where he saw her talking to someone… someone he'd seen before, but never actually met.

"…You must be Leon." Riku said, in a serious tone, as he placed the face to the name. He knew right away that Leon would not come to the island just to say 'hi!' …He knew right then, that he and Sora would have to fight once more.

Selphie turned around. "You know this guy?"

Riku nodded.

"Maybe you can tell me why he's looking at me like that?" Selphie pointed at Leon who was standing behind her, stepping forward to speak. His words were interrupted before he could begin.

"Leon!" Came Sora's warm welcoming voice. "Good to see you!"

The sun had now set, leaving a pale light in its place, amongst the budding night that began to encase the sky. Kairi followed close behind Sora to greet the familiar face. "Hi Leon. What brings you here?" She smiled.

Riku couldn't help but notice how naïve the two of them were. They greeted Leon like a good friend who had come for a friendly visit. But his being there really meant the start of another journey.

Selphie stood surprised to see that her friends apparently knew this weird guy very well.

"So…you all know each other then?" She asked with puzzled expression.

Kairi nodded. "Yup. Selphie, this is Leon. Leon, this is our friend, Selphie."

Upon hearing each other's names, Selphie and Leon looked at each other. Sora scratched head in confusion as to why their meeting was so uncomfortable. Kairi gave a questioning look to Riku, who just shrugged without giving any answers.

"Do…you…guys…know each other?" Sora asked awkwardly, pointing between Leon and Selphie.

Leon snapped out of the uncertain, unmoving state he had let himself get trapped in, and decided on what he should say. "Selphie…I apologize for my behaviour. You look like someone I once knew, it surprised me, but seeing as you have no recollection of ever knowing me, I am mistaken."

Despite the awkward meeting between her and Leon, she felt a strange sort of familiarity as soon as he spoke her name. She nodded to him. "Okay then, apology accepted…I better get going, though… I have homework."

Kairi sensed strange behaviour in her friend and so she offered to walk home with her. She said a quick goodbye, grabbed their ice creams, and left with her.

"So Leon, how are things back at Radiant Garden?" Sora knew that Leon was not much of a conversationalist beyond the limits of battle talk, but it had been so weirdly tense between Selphie and Leon, he thought it was best to lighten the mood.

Riku, however, did not care for casual talk and got straight to the point. "Why have you come here?"

Sora placed a hand on Riku's shoulder "Relax man, there's plenty of time to get to that." Sora turned to Leon. "I don't think you two have met officially yet…this is Riku. I keep telling him he's too suspicious for his own good."

Riku frowned.

"No," Leon said, "He's right. The darkness is growing once again, the world's need your help."

"What's causing the disturbance?" Riku inquired, Sora's attempt to lighten the mood all forgotten.

"We're not entirely sure. Something is feeding it and it's about time that we get you three off this island before it spreads to this world."

Kairi walked alongside Selphie, who seemed determined to keep her gaze directly ahead. She walked quickly, and Kairi had to keep picking up her pace in order to keep up with her.

"What's the hurry Selphie?" Kairi asked.

"I need to get home." Selphie said without looking at her. "I still have homework to do."

Kairi laughed lightly. "Since when? After school, you were so excited to hang out because you _didn't_ have homework."

Selphie mentally kicked herself. _Me and my big mouth._ She wondered why she hadn't come up with a better excuse. There were so many possibilities. Then again, she was never good at keeping things from Kairi, probably because she hated keeping things bottled up inside. She liked confiding in her friend, even though Kairi was obviously keeping things from her.

Kairi kept a smile, trying to make her friend feel comfortable "So then, what happened back there? I know you'll feel better if you talk to me."

Selphie knew she was right. She slowed down and turned to her friend. "I don't know really. That guy Leon, I mean at first I thought he was super weird, but afterward I kinda… felt like… maybe, I did know him before."

"Really?" Kairi said raising her eyebrows in disbelief.

Selphie shrugged. "But I don't even know why! Just a feeling I guess."

Kairi sat down on a nearby bench, resting her chin on her palm as she considered this strange possibility. "Let's think. Is there anyone you know who looks like Leon, or acts like him. Because well, lets just say Leon's not from around here…"

Selphie shuffled her foot on the dirt path.

"…and you haven't left the island before have you…" Kairi said this as a statement and not a question.

But Selphie answered anyway. "Well, sort of …"

Kairi looked at her. "Wait, what?"

"I'm not from around here. Well I could be, maybe. I don't know where I'm from."

Kairi rounded on her friend. "Selph, how come you never said anything?"

The words spilled from her mouth, so quickly that Kairi was having a hard time keeping up. "I thought that everyone would think I was weird. The truth is, my parents found me when I was 12, wondering on the beach like a lost puppy! I didn't remember who I was or how I ended up there. They took me in and enrolled me in school. I met you and Tidus, and everyone…and I made new memories. I didn't see the point in bringing it up again."

Kairi looked away and whispered. "Sometimes, you can't bury your past…it can catch up to you…"

The redhead suddenly seemed distant. Selphie couldn't her expression, her head was down, and her hair was covering her face. She wondered what she had said to cause the sudden change in her friend's attitude.

Everyone knew Kairi didn't originate from Destiny Islands either. She mentally kicked herself again, thinking now, how much better she would have felt if she had at least told Kairi about her secret. But now, it seemed that Kairi needed to say something. "Kai, what—" but what happened next smashed their confessional moment into pieces. "—WHAT THE HELL IS THAT?!" Selphie screamed.

* * *

The breeze suddenly picked up, sending shivers up Sora's spine. He nervously looked over his shoulder, feeling vulnerable to the unknown enemy.

It had been difficult for Sora to adjust to life as a young islander. For weeks he remained battle ready, taking on a battle stance at every loud sound or strong wind that met his senses. Eventually he learned to relax and concentrate on school, his friends, and being a normal kid. A kid who didn't have 'saving the world' at the top of his to-do list.

He took another look at his surroundings, this time more slowly. Though a large part of him was eager to get back into battle, another part of him felt dejected; he would have to leave his home again.

Shifting in a slight form of the battle stance that was still so familiar to him, he turned to Leon and spoke, "When do we leave?"

"Tomorrow. Yuffie's preparing the gummi ship as we speak. It's parked on the other side of the island."

Riku nodded. "Okay, me and Sora will meet you on the Beach tomorrow at sunrise."

Leon seemed to be staring into space for a moment; it took him a couple seconds to register Riku's words. Then he shook his head and said, "No, not just you two, Kairi has to come too."

Riku narrowed his eyes. "Are you kidding? Kairi needs to stay out of this. She can stay here."

"Come on Riku, Kairi would never go for that and you know it!" Sora said stepping up to Riku and looking up toward him too. Though the three of them were best friends there were some things that never seemed to change between them; Riku still had head over Sora, and the two boys still seemed to find ways to fight over Kairi.

"We don't have to tell her we're leaving, write her a note or something!" Riku was frustrated; it was bad enough that Sora had join the fight, but Kairi wasn't obligated.

Leon shook his head. He didn't have time for their bickering. He came between the two and raised his voice. "If Kairi stays here, she'll have to fend off the heartless all on her own. You all three have Keyblades and they'll come after one of you before anyone else. Do you really want to leave Kairi alone to fight for herself?"

Riku opened his mouth, ready to make an argument against Leon's case, but then he closed it and lowered his head in defeat.

Sora smirked proudly, knowing that Leon was on his side, but that feeling quickly subsided as the thought of Kairi as a possible target imprinted itself in his mind. "You really think they'd come after Kairi too?"

* * *

Kairi was on her feet, stunned to see the thing Selphie was pointing at. It was a heartless. And as Kairi stood there, trying to think of what to do, more Heartless appeared, and then some more after them. They were surrounded by the strange black little beings, their round soulless eyes emitting a yellow glow in the night.

"Where did they come from?!" Selphie whimpered, not knowing how to react.

"Selphie, keep away from them!" Kairi shouted, pulling friend closer to her. She whipped her head around and back again trying to look for a way out. But the more she hesitated, the more cornered the two girls became.

"How do I do that?!" Selphie was panicking. They were trapped. The little black beings were circling them. They continued to move toward the two girls further enclosing the space that separated them.

Kairi was still hesitating trying to think of what she should do. She wanted to call for Sora, but she knew she had already waited too long, and that for Sora to come and save them, they would have to wait a minute they didn't have. She was quickly understanding that when fighting the enemy, _every_ second counted…and she had already wasted too many.

"We're done for!" Selphie cried, gripping onto Kairi tightly.

Kairi was still in her head. _Why aren't you doing anything?! _She told herself over and over again. Then she realized it wasn't herself, it was Naminé.

_Kairi, you have a Keyblade. USE IT!_

_That's right! _Kairi told Naminé, as the epiphany came to her. "I have a keyblade!" She said triumphantly out loud, causing Selphie to spare a sideways glance toward the redhead.

Kairi stretched her right hand forward to summon her keyblade. She felt a strange sensation that started in her heart and spread up to her right shoulder and then toward her hand. And suddenly, it was there. Her hand clasped tightly on the handle of the elaborate key, just as a heartless had jumped up toward them.

Kairi swiped her blade a little awkwardly towards the creature, but nonetheless, it had hit. The heartless fell backward. At the sudden demonstration of power, there was a hesitation amongst the other heartless.

"Stay close to me!" She ordered Selphie who just nodded her head very fast and stayed behind her weapon-wielding friend.

Kairi moved forward swiping at every heartless in her path. It took at least four or five swings for her to eliminate any one heartless completely; she knew she was nowhere near as strong as Sora or Riku. But she pushed through anyway, trying to make a path so they could escape the ambush and get to their friends. Looking at the bright side of the situation, she was very glad that she only had to deal with shadow heartless. She knew that she probably couldn't fight off anything bigger than that.

* * *

Again, it took a moment for Leon to process what Sora had said. It wasn't like him to loose his focus, but his mind seemed to be drifting into two separate directions. Leon furrowed his brow, his features displaying an effort of deep concentration. Both Sora and Riku assumed Leon's expression indicated that he was deeply involved in the unfolding situation at hand…they had no knowledge of the battle that had begun with himself.

Forgetting about Sora's previous words Leon spoke. "Go home, say a goodbye to your family and get ready to fight the darkness once more. We're a little more ahead of the game this time around. But you'll hear more on that tomorrow."

Riku and Sora nodded solemnly.

"Come on Riku, we should catch up with Kairi before she gets home. She needs to know we're leaving tomorrow." Sora said.

Riku and Sora began to part ways with Leon, when a high-pitched scream sounded in the night. The three of them turned too look at each other.

"That's Selphie's scream." Leon said without thinking.

Though Riku wondered how Leon could possibly know Selphie's voice so well, he shoved that thought aside, and the three of them ran off the dock towards the source of the loud shriek.

* * *

**Authors Note: Well there is chapter two. Hope you liked it. I'd love to hear your feedback. _Constructive _criticism is welcome :D**

**Lots more action to come. Now you review! :D**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I don't own a thing...Kingdom Hearts is owned by Square Enix and Disney**

**Now read :D**

* * *

"Kairi!" Selphie shouted. All seemed to be going well with Kairi's plan of action. Selphie had been sure they would be able to get out of there, but then a different kind of yellow eyed monster had shown up. Kairi had actually sworn when she saw it, and then Selphie knew it was bad because Kairi never cursed...not EVER!

Kairi recognized it from when she had been in the castle at Hollow Bastion. It was small and airborne. It wore a blue robe and yellow hat, and it eyes glowed yellow just like the shadows. They used magic attacks and she knew nothing about magic. They assaulted with a sort of ice-based attack and she had no idea how defend herself, or Selphie, from it.

She tried to attack, taking an aggressive initiative, but the creatures moved to fast and high for her to reach. She dodged and ducked the icy magic, pulling Selphie along with her. Kairi knew she wouldn't be able to keep up for much longer.

And finally, she was hit. She had pushed Selphie aside and taken a hit cast intentionally for her friend. The attack left a freezing cold sensation throughout her body. It wouldn't have been so bad if she reacted quicker and stood up faster. But she was too slow, and then she was hit again and again, and again. Her Keyblade lay on the ground, too far for her to reach.

_Kairi put out your hand! You can summon it again!_ Naminé was shouting frantically for her other half to push on. But Kairi was in shock. It was too much for her to handle all at once. Her mind couldn't keep with all that was happening.

_Come on Kairi! You can do this, you can! _

"I can't…" Kairi whispered, still lying on the ground.

Selphie looked at her friend as she struggled to get up. "Do something Selphie!" She muttered to herself, looking around for anything that could be of use. _What can I do…?_

At the sight of the fallen Keyweilder, the dark creatures began to surround them again and Selphie's heart pounded. _What can I do?! _Kairi still could not stand and she had no idea how to use that weapon…

She looked up in time to see the flying blue creature prepare another icy blast. As another flash of ice just grazed her skin, Selphie was reminded of something. That tingly cold sensation brought something back. It was a word that had been buried deep inside her mind, far away from everything her life was familiar with now. '_Blizzara…' _she thought. And that word sparked the memory of another. '_Fire…Fira…'_

"Fira…" She whispered out loud. A slight orange glow flickered in her palms. She was amazed. _…Where is this…? No, try it again…_

Instinctively, she put her palms together and shouted. "FIRA!" The glow grew brighter and flames that appeared from her hands shot toward the flying creatures.

Selphie couldn't stop her own jaw from dropping. She had no idea that she was capable of such power. _Did I just…do that?_

Kairi was still on the ground but her head was raised, staring at Selphie in disbelief. But there were still heartless swarming around and she couldn't afford to waste anymore time gaping stupidly. So, she began to pick herself up; she still felt weakened from being hit so many times, so she was moving slower then she meant to.

More of the flying heartless swarmed toward Kairi and she dropped back to her knees to dodge their attack. She was inwardly yelling at herself. _Why are you so useless?!_ Naminé continued to cheer her on, but Kairi ignored her; she felt like she didn't deserve it. And then, Selphie was there. She had jumped in front of her, eager to pay her back for when Kairi had took a hit for her.

"FIRA!" Selphie shouted sending more heartless backwards. "FIRA!" She shouted again. She felt slightly annoyed by her repetitive course of action, but it was all she remembered.

"FI—!" Selphie was cut off, as Kairi pulled her to the side, allowing them both to miss an assault by mere inches. Selphie was ready to turn around and shout her new favourite word, when a blur of spiky brown hair had jumped in front them. He swung his weapon and destroyed four of the little monsters all at once.

"You girls alright?" Sora asked sternly, turning to look at them.

Kairi nodded, but Selphie shook her head. "Kairi's hurt." Selphie mumbled.

Kairi glared at her. "I'm fine!" She said, and then turned to Sora. "Just finish them already!"

"Done." Sora said confidently. And he was off. Swinging his Keyblade in all different directions, so fast that all Kairi's eyes could register was a speeding blur. His feet finally touched the ground, but they only stayed there for about three seconds. He jumped effortlessly into the air whacking the heartless that had been too unreachable for Kairi to hit.

Selphie was watching Riku swing his weapon, which by now, she had noticed was another key, just like the weapon both Kairi and Sora used. He swung at the squirming creatures with such force and skill, Selphie immediately felt less impressed with her own newly discovered strength. Her eyes shifted toward someone else. _Leon…_

Leon sliced through the creatures with brilliant execution, never missing a target. His weapon was not a key, but a rather large blade with a trigger attached to it. She noticed that with every couple of hits, the blade emitted a small explosion. It was some sort of …blade-gun…no, gun-blade. It seemed so familiar to her somehow.

Finally, the creatures that had threatened Selphie and Kairi were all gone. Save for a few crickets, heavy breathing, and the distant sound of the ocean waves splashing against the shore, it was silent.

Selphie broke the silence, unable to contain her astonishment. "Woah…what the hell was that?!" She was looking at Riku, Sora, and Kairi who were avoiding her gaze. The three just looked at each other in confusion, searching for the best way to go about answering her question.

"Oh, don't act like you're more confused than me, you three knew how to handle them… this wasn't the first time you've seen them, was it?" Selphie looked at her three friends accusingly, finger pointed.

Riku raised an eyebrow. "Hey, I saw _you_ fighting them off too, Selphie. Since when can you do magic?"

Sora crossed his arms and looked at Selphie matching Riku's smirk. _Ha! We're not the only ones with secrets!_ Sora thought.

"Ugh, I don't know! S—Since now!" Selphie said, putting her hands on her hips.

As he watched them argue, Leon thought back to the Selphie he used to know, and the Selphie that was standing before him. He knew, without a doubt, that they were one in the same. Magic had always been her specialty. It didn't surprise him too much that she remembered a spell or two to deal with the Heartless, even if she had no recollection of anything else.

"But never mind me, you guys kicked it!" Selphie exclaimed. "Riku, Sora, I knew you guys were good, but I didn't think it was possible to move that fast! And Kairi, I couldn't believe it when you started fighting them off! You have some skills!"

Kairi forced herself to smile, but she couldn't keep it there for too long. If Selphie was trying to make her feel better, it wasn't working. She didn't think she had any skills at all. She had felt so awkward when she was fighting, she could barely swing her blade properly. _I couldn't even get through the shadow Heartless on my own…_

The moment Kairi had realized she could summon her Keyblade, she thought that it would solve everything. She thought she wouldn't need Sora or Riku to come bale her out…again. She had told herself that she was ready to fight back. After all, she was able to wield a Keyblade…that had to mean she had some sort of strength within her. But no, not only did Sora, Riku, and Leon come to her rescue, but Selphie did too.

She was barely listening now, but Selphie was still talking "…and where did those key thingies come from? Because Kairi's just came out of nowhere…"

Kairi's body still felt sore from the battle. It was a huge effort for her to stand, but she didn't want any of them to know that. She wanted to be strong, but she felt so weak, tired and upset. Finally, her knees gave in, and they buckled inwardly.

"Kairi!" Sora caught her before she hit the ground. Kairi was grateful to be in his capable arms, but at the same she was angry with him. She wanted to hold herself up, and not always have to rely on Sora to catch her.

"Kairi, what's wrong?" Riku said, rushing to her other side.

She just sighed, she didn't want to complain in front of them.

_Kairi, just tell them you're hurt! They're here to help! _Naminé reasoned, but Kairi frowned. _I'm fine…I can take care of myself…I don't need to be saved all the time._

"Oh my god, Kairi…" Selphie looked really worried and decided to explain. "She took a lot of hits from the Blizzara spell."

Sora's concerned face relaxed somewhat. He knew what to do. He laid her gently on the ground. "Heal!" He yelled.

She felt a soothing sensation run through her body, and then the pain slowly ebbed away.

"Thanks…" Kairi mumbled quietly, trying to not let her disappointment show.

"Now, can someone _please_ give me an explanation?" Selphie begged, she put her hands together as if she were praying for an answer.

"They're called heartless." Leon said. It was the first time Leon spoke since battle. Sora nearly forgot he had been standing there. "And clearly, they've spread faster than we anticipated…"

Sora looked at him incredulously. "But Leon, I locked the keyhole in this world. How is that possible?!"

"That's one of the problems we've encountered." Leon seemed to be looking at all four teens in the eyes, just to show them how serious the situation was. "The keyholes are still locked but it's as if they are stronger than that now. They've been acting erratic, wreaking havoc amongst various worlds. We don't know what's causing this, but we thought we had more time to get to you three."

Riku crossed his arms in annoyance. "Then let's not waste anymore time! Let's go figure out how to take care of this problem."

Sora was thinking about how easy his home world had succumbed to the heartless the first time. It was never like other worlds. Destiny Island was a peaceful place and the majority of its inhabitants knew nothing about fighting. "But, we can't just leave the island like this. Who's going to defend it from the heartless? We have to do something."

Leon nodded. Though he agreed with Sora, the current circumstances at hand contained so many blanks that he wasn't sure how to go about guarding their world. His mission was simply to get Sora, Riku and Kairi off the islands, before the heartless picked up their aura. Get them off the island, that's all. That is what he'd been told.

But he knew too well that missions were not always as simple as they were made to be. Sometimes you had to make the judgment call. He'd learned that. He learned it from _her…_

Leon turned his head away from them for a moment as thoughts of his past ran through his mind. But he quickly composed himself and faced the four teens. "Got anything in mind?"

"Well, we know where the keyhole is." Riku stated. "Let's see if Sora can lock it again."

"Go," Leon said. " Take care of it."

"How do you know it will work?" Sora asked. He doubted that the same action would make much of difference if the Heartless were as strong as Leon said they were.

"You guys each have those gigantic key thingies…" Selphie cut in. "One of them is bound to work"

Riku looked at her. "You make things sound so simple."

"Yeah, it's easy to simplify things when you don't know what your talking about."

Kairi laughed, "Oh Selphie…" She felt cheered up already. Sora and Riku laughed too.

Leon just crossed his arms. "Okay, go, take care of it. Make sure you're on your guard, and the three of you," He was looking and Sora, Riku and Kairi, "Make sure you're back on this beach as soon as possible. I'm going to help Yuffie and we can prepare the ship for an even sooner take off."

Sora nodded. The four teens turned and set course for the task set out for them. When they were out of earshot, Leon spoke in a quiet tone. "Take care of yourself Selphie…"

Sora, Riku and Kairi led the way to the small rowboats that would take them to their favourite hangout spot.

It was a small island off the coast of mainland. All four of them were familiar with the place; it had been their playground since they were very young. It was filled with luscious tropical foliage, including a popular favourite, the papuo tree, and there were wooden paths and clubhouses built close to the tiny island's shores. It served as their own special paradise.

It had felt strange for them to be rowing at night. Sora was reminded of the night he had woken up and seen that strange purple cloud in the sky, the night the darkness had swallowed his whole world. Kairi was thinking about the night she had returned to her home, after Sora had defeated the Ansem imposter. She remembered it as the only time she would row back alone, without Sora or Riku. She glanced at Sora, who was in the same boat as her. He was doing all the rowing but he still caught her gaze. She smiled and he smiled back.

Riku was sharing a boat with Selphie, and though he sat instinctively near the paddles so he could do the rowing, the brunette had insisted that she do the job. He sighed and let her win, not feeling up to arguing with her. She didn't have to come with them; after all there was no reason for her to get involved. Even with her apparent magic abilities, Riku had never known Selphie as a fighter, a stubborn arguer maybe, but not a physical fighter. Still, after what had just happened, he knew it wouldn't be easy to tell Selphie to just look the other way. Besides, it wasn't safe for her to walk home by herself. So there she was, on the way to the island with them.

As soon as they stepped onto the sand, a couple of heartless had shown up. Sora quickly swiped at few with his Keyblade and Selphie had taken care of the others with her _Fira _spell.

Sora frowned. They were very low level heartless and it didn't take much to destroy them, but the heartless always seemed to progress in strength. He wondered what the hell was going on outside of their world.

"Let's hurry." Riku said severely.

"So, where are we going?" Selphie asked, trying to keep up.

"You'll see." Kairi said. She had never told her about her and Sora's secret place.

They sprinted up the wooden bridge, all the while Sora and Riku kept whacking heartless, and shooting spells at them too. They were quick, making sure not to waste time on unnecessary fights. Sora reached the entrance to the cave first, and immediately went down on all fours to make his way into the crawlspace. Riku followed, struggling to fit in the cave that he had nearly outgrown.

Selphie cocked her head. "We need to go in there? But…it'll be dark." She didn't much care for enclosed spaces, especially dark ones. She stared in the whole Sora and Riku had just crawled in biting her lip with uncertainty.

Kairi shrugged. That kind of darkness scared her a lot less these days, and even with their current situation, she loved this cave, she could never be afraid of it. "Its not so bad, you could wait out here if you want." Kairi said, before turning around and entering the crawl space.

There was a pause. "Screw that!" Selphie followed her friend into the cave.

Selphie was the only one who was unfamiliar with the cave. Stepping out of the tiny entrance path, she was surprised to find a remarkably spacious area. It was weird how it seemed lighter than it should amongst the surrounding stonewalls. She felt a certain warmth in this place, and though she didn't understand it, she knew that it made the place special.

There were drawings scattered all over the walls. They looked very similar to Kairi's old drawing style: choppy and childish. She placed a hand on one of the drawings. She wasn't too surprised when she realized it was of Kairi and Sora, sharing a papou fruits. She laughed. "You guys are too cute."

Kairi and Sora both blushed, but Riku just crossed his arms. "Focus guys, focus."

Sora shook off his embarrassment and put on a stern face. He stretched out his Keyblade, just as he had done once before. Then, it emerged: an oversized keyhole fit for an oversized key. But to Sora's absolute shock, the hole did not lead to heart of light like it was supposed. Inside the keyhole was dark, with blackish purple colours churning in motion.

Selphie was done being surprised at this point, but as looks of fear and confusion took over her friend's expressions, she knew that this was apparently not good. "Umm is…that…bad?" She mumbled.

"Why is it dark?!" Kairi cried.

Riku shook his head. "That can't be good…"

Sora stared at it stupidly. _How can the Keyhole be dark_…_? Has the heart of our world already been taken by the heartless?_

_No, don't be stupid._ Roxas seemed to be acting as the voice of reason. _If that were true then everything would be consumed by it…_

"Then what the hell is going on?!" Sora screamed to no one in particular. The keyhole remained where it was, dark shades of purple and black swirling together. It wasn't locking, and it wasn't going away either.

Selphie looked from Sora to Riku, and to Kairi. They were panicking. But the next course of action seemed so obvious to her. _Why aren't they doing anything?!_

"What do we do?" Kairi asked desperately.

"Try another one!" Selphie said with her hands in the air.

"What?" Sora didn't register what she had said. His mind was still panicking.

"Your keys!" Selphie said, like it was the most obvious thing in the world. "You have 3 keys, try another one, or…I don't know, try them at the same time."

_Duh!_ Roxas teased his nobody.

Sora snapped out of it, fully aware now that there would be plenty of new challenges ahead and he couldn't continue to react like he just had. He stretched out his arm, aiming the Keyblade at the keyhole once more. Kairi and Riku were by his side following his action.

White light from Kairi's Keyblade penetrated through the dark swirls in the keyhole. Riku's Key seemed to be pulling at the darkness to leave the keyhole. And just like always, the yellow glow from Sora's Keyblade went straight through the middle of the keyhole. It happened for about a minute and then all was quiet again.

Selphie was amazed for the fourth or fifth time that night. She just shook her head. "You know what, I'm not even going to say anything this time…"

Kairi laughed, turning to face her. "See…I told you it was hard to explain."

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**Hope you liked! Feedback please! Reviews are like cookies :D Next Chapter Sora is met with an interesting surprise .. teehee**


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: Square Enix and Disney kingdom hearts :D**

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The Highwind landed with a thud on the sands of Destiny Islands. Though it wasn't a very smooth landing, it was much better then the last time it had disembarked on the island less than 24 hours ago.

"I said I was sorry!!" Yuffie whined. "Geeeze, when are you going to let it go?"

The man in the seat beside her just shook his head. "Not until I see a proper landing from you. A little harder, and we would have had to run repairs on it…again!"

Yuffie swore. "Pshhh my landing was just fine." She crossed her arms and nodded her head to emphasize her point.

Leon watched the two argue, and it reminded him of another time. The memory took hold of him, and it began to materialize, replacing what was actually happening in front of him. Suddenly he was no longer in the Highwind, but in the Ragnorak. The room was flooded with more light and people from his past stood in place of the ones in the present. Yuffie became Selphie, flying the Ragnorak with an excessive amount of enthusiasm. Beside her was Irvine, flailing his arms like a crazy person. He was panicking and telling her to slow down. The memory was almost enough to prop a laugh out of serious and unyielding Leon.

_Irvine Kinneas…_Leon repeated the name in his head. It was funny, he hadn't thought about Irvine in a long time, but then again, he hadn't thought about Selphie either until he had seen her alive and breathing the previous night. The memory faded and he was back in the Highwind, watching Yuffie fume at the redhead man.

"Keep telling yourself that sweetheart…"

"Oh that's it! You're going down!" Yuffie was ready to launch herself at him.

"Alright….enough!" Leon raised his voice. "Yuffie, let's go."

Yuffie turned to follow Leon.

"What, I'm not invited?" the man sitting in the chair next to the Driver's seat raised his eyebrows in mock disappointment.

Leon stopped and shook his head toward him. " Not a good idea. We'll have to explain once they're here on the ship."

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The first thing Sora registered when he woke up the next morning was the sound of the rushing waves. They sounded to close to be coming from outside his window. Sora sat up from the sand and squinted in the soft morning light. Right in front of him the ocean waves stirred, and yellow light shone over the horizon where the sun would soon rise. "Oh yeah."

Memories of the night before flooded his thoughts and he understood why his muscles slightly ached. Granted, he had been through battles much worse than what he fought through the previous night, but he had been living the life of a normal school boy, and he had not fought an enemy for survival in a long while. Not to mention he had barely had a couple hours of sleep.

After fighting the heartless and re-locking the keyhole he had rushed back home to change out of his uniform. A huge bout of guilt weighted down on his shoulders when his mother had yelled at him for coming home so late. He knew that once he stepped onto that gummi ship, he wouldn't be coming home for a long time. He kissed his mom and apologized for being so late. Then he went up to his room where he wrote a goodbye note, and prepared for the next morning.

Though he had outgrown most of his old battle wear, his shoulder plates and belt still fit. So he chose some cargo pants with plenty of pockets for supplies, and a short-sleeved sweatshirt to pare with his old gear. He grabbed various key chains and potions, shoved them in his pockets and snuck out his window.

And so there he was, enjoying the soft gentle breeze that came off the shores of his home.

There was a soft grunt that came from his left: Kairi was sleeping beside him. She had changed out of her uniform too. Her long crimson hair was tied up in a ponytail, leaving a couple bangs in her face. She was wearing a jean skirt with pink tights that went just above her knees. Her favourite black bag was fastened around her waist and clipped to the left side of it was her lucky charm, the one that allowed Sora to use the 'Oathkeeper.'

He stared at her eyelids, thinking about the beautiful blue that lay behind them. But he realized that her soft features did not display the serene relaxed expression she usually displayed when she was asleep. She was nervous and frustrated about something, kinda like she was in some sort of conflict. Sora considered waking her, but he didn't want to disrupt her rest. He sighed and settled for placing a hand on her shoulder "I'll keep you safe Kairi." He said softly. Kairi's expression seemed to ease with his touch.

Sora rested his eyes as he lay next to Kairi. He stayed blissfully that way for only a moment.

"Rise and shine kids!!" Sora jumped as Yuffie had seemingly come out of nowhere.

Kairi looked stunned and had to gather herself and remember where she was, just as Sora had done a few moments earlier. She blushed at the realization that Sora had his arm around her shoulders.

"Oh you two are too cute!" Yuffie beamed.

Sora took his arm back, and he and Kairi looked away from each other shyly. He wished people would stop saying that. Roxas laughed at his embarrassment. As he began to stand up, Yuffie gasped.

"You've grown so much more since I last seen you!" She touched the top of his forehead as if she were measuring his height. "Your taller, and you look older too!"

Kairi giggled and Yuffie rounded on her too. "You too! I swear you were…" She raised a hand to indicate the height, "only this tall when I first saw you!"

Kairi shrugged, Sora scratched his head. "I guess a lot has changed in two years…" He searched for something to say to Yuffie, but through his eyes, well she hadn't changed at all. He laughed. "It's great to see you!"

Yuffie smiled. It was then the two saw Leon standing nearby. He stood beside Yuffie shaking his head a little. "Alright, enough messing around." He turned to Sora. "I noticed the lack of heartless around here. I assume it went well then."

Sora nodded.

"Great, well done. We'll have to discuss it once we're on the ship…it's parked just beyond that bend." Leon pointed in the direction behind him. Sora was amazed at Leon's ability to always stay on track; he hadn't even heard a 'good morning' from the man and they were already talking about leaving.

Yuffie put her hands on her hips "So then let's get goin—! Wait someone's missing…where's Riku?"

It wasn't like Riku to be late for something like this. They all looked around for him, and right on queue they heard his unmistakable, serious, no-nonsense tone:

"Quit following me! Go home."

They walked toward the direction his voice had carried from. Riku was reprimanding a puppy-faced Selphie, who had guiltily stuck her head out from behind a tree. "Ple-e-e-e-ase…?" She whined.

"I'm serious Selphie; you're not involved in this and you don't have to be." Riku argued sternly with her, not noticing the others were close by.

Selphie abandoned her effort to hide, and strode toward Riku with a determined look on her face. "If you have the choice to be involved, then so do I! You're my friends and I want to help!"

"My choices have already been made complicated by the ones I've made in the past. Friend or not, go home!"

The tension between the two was felt by the others standing nearby. Selphie and Riku stood their ground and seemed loyal to their convictions. Clearly, Selphie was determined to help, and it was never a good sign when Riku brought up his internal conflicts of the past. Sora had a feeling that neither of them would budge anytime soon, and so he had to step in. He placed himself between Riku and Selphie and turned to his best friend. "Easy Riku..." Then he turned to Selphie. "Thanks for everything Selph, you helped us out last night, but Riku's right, you don't fully understand what you're getting into."

Selphie shook her head. "But you don't understand, I need to…" She hesitated, her voice losing volume, "…I need to find out some stuff…"

Selphie's response trailed off. She didn't feel like explaining her blank past to everyone who was standing there. She hoped her vague plead would be enough to persuade them to let her come. She looked toward Kairi who was looking as if she was trying to think of something to say. Selphie knew her friend understood her needs and that if anyone there would back her up it would be her.

Then, she looked at Leon. The man carried an unreadable expression, but he was looking at her and not through her. Selphie didn't fully understand it, but she felt like he understood her too. She wanted to know why…she wanted to know who this man was and where he came from.

"Selphie we'll be okay, and before you know it, the three of us will be back on the island…" Sora was still trying to persuade Selphie to go home as he was completely oblivious to the emotional staring contest Selphie had initiated with Leon and Kairi.

"Let her come." Kairi suddenly spoke. She didn't want to say anything that caused more tension for Selphie and she hoped her expression was intense enough to convince Riku and Sora that she needed to come. _She needs to understand…_

Riku just crossed his arms and shook his head. He was not giving in that easy. As far as he was concerned Kairi shouldn't be coming either…

Leon crossed his arms. "She can come."

"What--?" Sora cocked his head sideways. He would never in a million years expect Leon to cave to request like this so easily. He wasn't known from straying away from the task at hand, he always remained focused, and frowned upon any distractions.

"You heard me. She comes. She's made her choice its no use arguing over it. If the four of you keep making an argument out of everything, we'll never get off this island." Leon turned around made a hand gesture that said hurry up. "This way."

Selphie moved ahead quickly just in case anyone changed their minds. _Thank you…_

"Whatever." Riku breathed, it seemed Leon would not permit him to win any battles.

"Relax Riku, she has her reasons for wanting to come." Kairi said putting a hand on his shoulder.

As they turned the bend, the gummi ship came into view. Leon slowed his pace, looking at the teens with a side-glance. "Listen…" _How do I…? Well, they have to know…and someone has to tell them…_ "…we have some new members on our team."

"Really? That's great. I'd love to meet them!" Sora said enthusiastically.

"Well…" Yuffie bit her lip. "You kind of…already met them."

Sora scratched his head thinking about whom they could be talking about. _Someone I already met?…Who's on the team? _It had to be someone from one of the worlds. "Errrm…is Aladdin one of them? He was always offering to help in anyway he could."

"Um no…I've never met an Aladdin…" Yuffie seemed to be talking slower then she would normally.

"Is it—?" Sora was ready to launch into reciting a great list of all the friends he had made in his travels, but Leon cut him off.

"—Well, due to circumstances we really don't comprehend yet, it seems Organization XIII is not all gone…" Leon began, and mentally prepared himself for whatever came next.

The three Keyblade wielders all stopped in their tracks. Sora's jaw dropped. "What?! What do you mean?! That's impossible, I—!"

"—We," Riku's spoke matching Sora's shock. "We destroyed them!"

"Well… they're not destroyed anymore…" Yuffie said a little sarcastically, rubbing the back of her neck, trying to make light of the discussion.

"How do you guys know this?!" Sora looked between Yuffie and Leon, unable to understand. _But…they're gone! Done! Finished! What's going on?! _He took a deep breath and quieted his mind. "Okay, you know what? Let's just hurry and get on the ship so we can discuss this." And with that, Sora picked up his pace and jogged ahead toward the gummi ship, all thoughts of the new members forgotten.

"Sora, wait!" Yuffie called desperately. But he was already too far ahead to hear her. "…And he's gone. You think you could have been a little quicker with the explanation Leon?"

Leon glared at her. _Whatever._

Sora reached the hatch of the gummi ship and propped it open. As soon as he stepped inside and saw who was occupying the central room of the ship, he took a step back in shock.

"You!" He pointed accusingly at the young man sitting comfortably with his feet up on the table. The blond had his eyes closed as he listened to his headphones. He hummed happily to his tunes until he saw Sora standing at the entrance with a fierce expression on his face. He jumped out of his seat. "Gaaaah!"

"You!!" Sora said again, louder, now that he had his full attention. Then it dawned on him…_Organization XIII has commandeered the ship!_

Roxas scoffed. _What are you a pirate?_

Sora ignored his nobody. He was a little irritated that he wasn't taking the Organization XIII seriously. _This is Organization XIII! They're back, somehow, and they've taken over the ship!_

_Relax, it's just Demyx. He's not a fighter._

Sora laughed out loud. _You've never fought him before, have you? _Sora stared Demyx down. "You better prepare for a fight…you and whoever else you brought along with you…because you are all going down!"

The blond looked staggered, waving his hands in front of his face defensively. "No, wait I can explain!" He stammered.

Sora summoned his Keyblade, and was ready for battle. His eyes darted back and fourth from Demyx's face and Demyx's hand, anticipating the water wielder's attack. But the attack never came. Instead, the blond was running away, scampering toward the next room.

Sora relaxed his stance and cocked an eyebrow. "Hey! Get back here!" His legs worked automatically and began to follow him.

However, just as the blond reached the doorframe, another figure blocked his only way out.

"Axel! Axel!" Demyx nearly collided with the taller man standing in his way. "Hide me! He's trying to kill me!" The blond tried to hide behind the redhead, but Axel rolled his eyes and just grabbed him by the collar and shoved him toward Sora. The shove was enough to get Demyx's feet tangled in with Sora's legs.

"Don't be such a wimp Demyx!" Axel said in a half annoyed, half amused tone. And Demyx and Sora tumbled toward the ground, each trying to get away from the other.

Roxas was laughing hysterically at the situation and at his fellow Organization member's antics. _Oh man, they haven't changed at all._

_I'm glad you find this so amusing._ Sora told Roxas bitterly, trying to get the heavy water wielder off of him. "Move! Get off!"

"Axel! Why did you do that for?!"

…I can't believe you ever felt threatened by Demyx…

_Shut up._

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**So there it is! I hope you enjoyed it. Thankyou to everyone who has reviewed. Thanks for the cookies, i love cookies :D Special thanks to my editor 3**

**The plot will pick up next chapter :D, please review!**


	5. Chapter 5

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DISCLAIMER: Don't own a thing....All characters belong to Square Enix and Disney....

**Chapter 5**

It was an awkward gummi ride

"We tried to tell him, I swear!" Yuffie said, looking at Demyx with a truthful look.

"Keep your eyes on the road!" Axel cursed.

Yuffie wasn't the smoothest of drivers. Every so often the ship would wobble to one side or the other.

There was much that needed to be discussed, but everyone on the ship seemed to be trapped in their own head. There had been an awkward tension in the ship that made everyone a little hesitant to speak.

Riku was staring at the two former Organization members intensely. It made Demyx feel a little uneasy but he took comfort in the fact that looks couldn't kill. Axel just sat back casually, and Kairi was sitting beside Riku, hoping she could feel safer being so close to her over-protective friend. She was stiff and her head was cast down but every so often her eyes would dart upward to get a look at the redhead sitting across from her. She made sure he didn't see her looking.

But Axel did see her looking. He could sense her nervous gaze, and a part of him felt a little guilty because of it. But then again, he wasn't supposed to feel anything was he?

Sora sat with his right cheek leaning into his hand. It seemed too unreal for his mind to process what he was seeing. And weird, really weird. Sure Axel had helped him out in the end, but he had seen him fade away into nothingness…and now he was sitting there nonchalantly as if it wasn't a big deal.

And then there was Demyx, who was terrified out of his mind! He kept looking at Sora as if the Keyblade wielder was going to pounce on him at any second. And why would he be like that? It's not like Demyx was completely helpless; Sora remembered how difficult fighting him had been.

Leon leaned against the wall, observing the tension between the former Organization members and the three key wielders. He sighed, wondering if it was better to ignore it or let them talk it out. The point of bringing the two men along was so that Sora, Riku and Kairi would be able to talk to them and move past what they used to be. But now, no one was saying anything, and he was re-thinking the decision to bring the two of them along.

Among the confusion present in the room, Leon's eyes found Selphie, who was gazing out the window and humming happily. He was still in disbelief that she was there. Selphie, the same girl who fought alongside him and their friends back in his own world. She was looking out the window and humming exactly as she would if she were on a train to Galabadia. When Leon looked at Selphie, it was like time hadn't passed at all since the last time he'd seen her, since the time he'd seen any of _them. _

He knew he should be discussing the current threat with the others, he knew he was supposed to be staying focused and on task, but how could he keep his feet grounded in the present when such a big part of his past was standing so close?Maybe his past didn't have to stay lost forever…maybe…maybe he could have it all back.

"Ple-e-ease, will somebody say something?" Yuffie pleaded, this time she made sure to keep her concentration on what was ahead of her in space.

"Alright." Sora said, standing up. The silence had gone on too long. He had questions. _And I want answers…_ "Why and how are you two here?" His finger darted between Axel and Demyx.

Axel seemed taken back, but it was mock surprise. "What? Am I not wanted?!"

Demyx scoffed. "I thought Roxas would be a little happy to see us…"

Sora shook his head in annoyance. "Let's not start with that again. You're talking to me right now, not Roxas!"

Demyx face light up. "So you mean, Roxas is in there too?" He motioned to Sora's skull. "Hey there buddy!"

"Yes…and hey! Don't change the subject!" Sora frowned.

Axel chuckled, sitting up. "Alright, I guess we gotta get all these explanations out the way."

With his mind back on task, Leon made a hand gesture for Axel to speed it up. _Finally…_

"Someone resurrected us." Axel began, but paused soon after. He was thinking about what else to say, but he didn't really understand it fully himself. _I mean, can something be 'resurrected' if it never really 'existed' in the first place…? _"I'm not sure how, maybe the rules don't apply if you're…well, you know…" _…if you're nothing… _Axel finished his thought only in his mind.

"The woman who did this, she expected us all to work for her…but I wasn't up for that again." Demyx said, picking up where Axel trailed off and saving him from saying anything else.

"A woman?" Riku said in a questioning tone.

"Yeah, she's a nobody who calls herself Dexea… she used some sort of spell." Demyx explained.

"So, let me get this straight, this…_Dexea_ brings you back to life, and then you two betray her?" Riku sounded very cynical as he spoke.

"Yup, that's right." Axel nodded.

Sora understood where Riku was going with this. Maybe it was Roxas' influence, but for some reason Sora felt that the two Organization members were actually genuinely here to help. Still he let Riku carry on with his interrogation, he knew it needed to be done.

"How do we know your not actually here to betray _us_?" Riku asked, with his eyes narrowed.

Axel stood up from his chair and took a step towards Riku. "Look, I'm nobody's lackey. Back when we all joined the Organization, it was like we didn't have a choice. But the truth is, I wasn't cut out to be a , you tell me I don't have a heart, but I'm not stupid and I don't like the idea of mindlessly following someone else's orders. I play by my own rules, and if that means I want to help you guys stop what ever those morons are trying to do, than I'll do that. You can accept my help, or not." **  
**

Riku kept his expression tight, but he turned to Demyx waiting for his answer.

Demyx glanced to his left and right, searching for someone who could be within Riku's hard glare. But of course, there was no one else. He found his voice and stammered out his response. "I—It's like Axel said, when we joined, it felt like it was the only thing to do. But I'm wasn't cut out for it either, so I'm here to offer my help." He sent a quick glance toward Sora before bringing his eyes back onto the floor.

"Are we satisfied now?" The impatient tone came from Leon's corner. "We have other things to discuss."

"One more thing we should get out of the way." Axel said and he turned to Kairi. "Relax, will you? I'm sorry. I was never going to hurt you."

Kairi's shoulders relaxed. Sora had already told her that much, but she needed to hear Axel say it. Her cheeks flushed a little embarrassed for not being able to hide her fear. "Okay, thank you."

Selphie was sitting next to Kairi now. "Wait, so what did you do?"

Leon read Selphie's confused expression. "Since she is coming with us, maybe someone should fill her in on her a few things." His hand motioned toward Selphie.

"Thank you!" Selphie exclaimed.

Riku, Sora, and Kairi turned toward their friend. "Alright," Sora said. "But sit back Selph, because this is going to be a long story."

* * *

A woman walked through the dark and dingy alleyway. She loathed hiding away from the common folk, as if she had a reason to fear them. But until she was at her strongest, she was not ready to make herself known. Still, even at her present power level, she would be able to crush any insignificant being that came into her line of sight. The woman held back her urges, though she welcomed any exceptions that were to wander into her line of vision.

Something else stirred in the shadows of the alleyway. She turned ready to kill the being that had seen her, the one that knew of her _existence_. Her eyes darted back and fourth until they fell upon the black figure awkwardly moving out of the shadows.

It was a Heartless. She could tell it knew of her presence; it turned erratically trying to get away. She smirked in amusement. _It fears me__…_ Then she put her hand forward, grabbing onto the Heatless right where its heart would be. She held onto its heart, and it writhed and twitched as the darkness whisked away from the little being. It did this until all that was left was the heart it had once held captive. It was a heartless no more.

The woman looked over at what she had taken, studying its usefulness. It had been the heart of someone weak, she had decided. Some frail, insignificant human, who, from what she could see, barely put up a fight to hold on to their pathetic existence.

Her eyes narrowed as she stared at the heart. "It is not mine," and she clamped her fingers into a fist, crushing the heart into nothing.

She walked on, her red robe swaying behind her as she went. Even as she came to the end of the alleyway, she kept herself hidden beneath the cover of shadows. It was now that she spotted _them._

"Donald! Goofy!" She watched as the spiky haired boy she'd been warned about collided with two odd looking creatures.

"Sora!" one of them quacked enthusiastically. He threw his arms around the boy. _What is this? _The woman thought.

The white haired boy—she assumed this was the one who had been conflicted with darkness—walked toward the other creature. The boy's face seemed to brighten at the sight of him. The creature made a sound that was somewhere between a laugh a hiccup."Good to see you Riku!" He said.

A girl came into view. She cocked her a head to the side, her face light up and she started to laugh. _Why is she laughing?_

The woman continued to watch the scene take place before her. _What are they—?_ They must know of the increased Heartless activity, she was sure of this. So why were they wasting time with this strange behaviour? What was its purpose? She willed herself not to underestimate her enemy, but it was difficult for her even consider these weak, and seemingly distracted group of beings a serious threat.

Watching them frustrated the woman. Their expressions seemed light as air; she was enraged just watching them all behave in this manner she could not comprehend. She wanted to attack, to destroy them. She wanted to see their faces contorted with heavy fear.

Two more people came into her view. And suddenly, she was consumed with an incomprehensible sense of rage. The man had his arms crossed and carried a serious expression. The girl seemed to bounce lightly with each step she took. She was filled with such revulsion; she wanted to make them suffer. But she wasn't completely sure was it about these two that enraged her so?

She decided then and there, that she would destroy them. When the time was right, she would destroy them all before they even knew of her identity. She kept watching them and the arrival of two new figures fed her immense rage even pairwalked casually beside the man and the girl whom she inexplicably despised. They were traitors, and by now, they would have revealed much more information then was meant to be shared at this stage.

With her eyes narrowed and unfathomable anger and frustration coursing through her, she disappeared into the shadows.

* * *

Leon was pacing back and forth in the control room of the Hollow Bastion Restoration Committee Headquarters. He had intended on starting the briefing when they were in the gummi ship, but everyone had been too distracted. After a happy reunion took place, everyone assembled into the room, and finally, they were able to begin.

"The first incident," Leon began, " was reported in Agrabah just a little after the fall of Xemnas. It seemed insignificant at the time, as Heartless attacks were non-existent. Any reported sightings described the Heartless as cowering away and running off. We assumed it was part of the after-shock from Xenmas' death, but when more worlds were being unlocked with non-aggressive Heartless roaming around, it became suspicious.

"What could possibly be scaring the Heartless away into submission?" He asked the group.

"Your face." Axel mumbled, from the end of the table.

"Axel, was he talking to you?" Tifa frowned.

"Hey, the question was open to everyone."

Leon rolled his eyes, restraining himself from commenting back and continued. "After Agrabah, there were heartless sightings in Atlantica, and then Neverland, Halloweentown and so on. All reportings described the same strange behaviour. At this point it seemed the Heartless ceased to be hostile, and well frankly, we were finding it more difficult to see this change as a negative."

"But we couldn't just ignore it of course." Yuffie cut in. "Good thing too, because eventually, they started to attack again. It was like these random spouts of violence where a bunch of them would go crazy and start attacking."

"Like when they attacked me and Kairi?" Selphie shouted out. Kairi winced at the mention of the attack. Did she have to bring it up? All eyes shifted toward Selphie and Kairi.

Selphie raised an eyebrow. "What, was I supposed to put my hand up?"

Aerith stood up, a concerned look on her face. "The Heartless attacked you? On Destiny Island?"

Leon waved a hand. "We'll get to that in a second," He motioned toward the group of teens. "They need to know everything first."

Yuffie shrugged. "Okay then, moving on. The heartless started attacking again, and it would happen out of nowhere. Kinda like, they were really bored or something. So, here at Radiant Garden, we've upped security. Cloud's on duty right now, patrolling the streets for any possible activity."

"So you don't know what the cause of all this is?" Riku asked.

Leon motioned his hand toward Axel and Demyx, praying they would take the discussion serious enough do their part without personal commentary.

"Well," Axel began as he stood up. "We're pretty sure it's Dexea…it's really not that much of stretch, she is twisted and very violent. She's the one who brought us back."

"We sort of got out before we really knew what she was after. But, well, we at least know she's trying to get stronger."

Riku raised his eyebrow. "That's it, you '_at least'_ know? So why aren't we going after this woman?"

Axel scoffed. "You can't run into the battlefield blind folded, even I know that. How would you go after her? We don't even know where she is."

"So what have you all been doing up to now?" Riku questioned.

"We've been keeping up with heartless attacks here in Radiant Garden." Leon explained. "Lately, they've been slowing down a little, but for while they were completely erratic. We were finally able come out get you three…" He glanced at Selphie. He was still felt thrown off every time he remembered her presence. "…well, four. Axel and Demyx were able to tell us their past locations while they were with Dexea. We compared their coordinates with where the heartless attacks have been, and they always seem to happen when Dexea and the Organization far away from the site. So we've come to the conclusion that the heartless are afraid of this woman."

Sora was trying to wrap his head around this theory. " But—but the heartless are corrupted hearts, filled with darkness. Even if they could think well enough to fear anything, why would they fear this woman?"

"I'll answer that." Axel said raising his hand. "Because this woman is completely delusional. Even worse than Xemnas. She was always spouting garbage, about the power us nobodies could have, if we were to find our hearts. She says that, since we have lived without emotions, we can take our hearts back, use its power to our benefit but keep our emotions under control."

"But, what's the point of that?" Kairi spoke up for the first time. "That's what having a heart is all about, being able to feel emotions."

"Exactly!" Axel said throwing his hands in the air. "But trust me, you wouldn't want to argue with her."

"So Dexea is after her heart?" Kairi asked.

"Aren't all nobodies?" Axel said, shrugging. Kairi could a hint of sadness in his eyes when he said this.

"But," Demyx stood up. "There are other ways of finding your way back to your heart. And I really don't think searching through every heartless out there is the answer."

Axel sent Demyx a sideways glance and shook his head slightly. "That is, if finding your heart really matters. And all those brainless organization members just take her word as if she's god. Maybe it's different for Dexea, but for most of us nobodies, there comes a point where it just doesn't matter anymore…"

Sora cocked his head sideways as if he just realized something. "Wait, exactly how many of you organization members are alive again?"

"Well…There's Luxord, Xigbar…" Demyx began counting them down with his fingers. "Marluxia, Larxene, Saix… yup that about covers it."

Sora's head was spinning with the five names—five nobodies who surely wanted him dead. "Great." He muttered.

* * *

**Hey all, sorry for the long update...enjoy and please review... Please? I'll give you sea salt ice cream...maybe ? ;)**


	6. Chapter 6

**Hey everyone, sorry for the long update…I don't really have a good excuse for it except that cursed thing called writer's block! I hope you like it, I'll update faster next time.**

**DISCLAIMER: Don't own a thing....All characters belong to Square Enix and Disney....**

**Chapter 6**

Sora sat on a roof overlooking the town. He tapped his foot continuously, trying to get his nerves in check. He should be more relaxed than this. He was older now, more experienced and it wasn't like before. He wasn't a 14-year-old boy separated from his friends and thrown into a conflict he had little understanding of. He was 17 years old now, and had been briefed and informed about what was going on. He was working with the Restoration Committee. Leon and Yuffie included Sora as an important part of their team. They trusted and counted on him and they didn't treat him like a child. So… why was he acting like one?

He remembered having more faith last time. He believed in himself and his friends and almost never questioned it. He never gave a thought to the possibility of a tragic ending. His faith had given him an attitude that seemed to lift anyone's spirits, especially his own. But now, negative thoughts weighted in on him.

_How could this happen?! _He thought to himself, as he held his forehead in frustration. Organization members he had killed were back, there was no denying this fact; he had seen two of them with his own eyes. Sure, Demyx and Axel were turning a new leaf, but he'd be more than crazy to believe that any of the other members would do the same. Sora didn't have to wonder, he knew they'd be out for revenge, and just thinking about all the possible ways they could try to get him, made him feel even more hopeless.

_Sora, you have to stop thinking like this! _

Sora shook his head, ignoring his nobody. It wasn't that easy to turn off your thoughts.

_I don't care if its not easy, you have to stop this!_

"And you have to stop listening to my thoughts!" Sora snapped.

_Like I have a choice._

Sora knew this. He knew that Roxas couldn't just tune out his thoughts, especially when they were screaming so loud in his head.

_You have a job to do now. _

Yes, Sora had a job to do…again. They had discussed everything in the meeting. Him and his friends were informed that the Organization was back, and a woman named Dexea was now calling the shots. He, Riku, and Kairi had explained what happened during their last night on Destiny Islands, how the Heartless attacked, and how the heart of their world had been covered in Darkness. At that point, King Mickey had shown up. _"Its just as I feared, the Heartless are hiding within the hearts of the worlds."_

Everyone in the room had been shocked to hear the king's conclusion. However, no one questioned it, except Yuffie. _"But that doesn't make sense! If they're inside the heart of worlds, why aren't they devouring them?" _Sora remembered her saying it with wide eyes, thoughts of world destruction surely running through her mind.

"_Because they don't want to be discovered." _The king had replied. _"It's just as Axel said, Dexea and the Organization are out to find their hearts. The Heartless contain hearts that they believe need to be searched through. But those Nobodies don't understand the heart and what it means to have one…They're on a chase for something they will never find…"_

Sora and Riku along with Donald and Goofy had been given their mission. They were to travel to different worlds to stop the Heartless from further infecting the hearts of worlds. This had to be done before destroying the main threat, because if Dexea and the Organization were to be removed first, the heartless would have no more reason to hide, and they would consume the hearts that were once their refuge.

It was a seriously messed up situation, and Sora couldn't help but think about everything that could go wrong. But what made this predicament any different from the others he faced? Why wasn't he as confident as before? Riku had always been the one with doubts, and Sora had always been the one to assure him that everything would turn out okay. Maybe he wasn't being childish, maybe this was part of growing up. Maybe that's why he couldn't ignore the possible consequences as easy as before.

If this is growing up, then start growing down! Thinking like this isn't helping anyone, trust me, I know from experience, it's really just a waste of thought…

"_Then what should I do Roxas?" _Sora began, inwardly yelling at his other self. _"Am I supposed to just carry on as if I have nothing to worry about, taking care of the Heartless from world to world, completely ignoring the fact that there are nobodies out there who I know want revenge for what I've done to them?"_

_It's not like you haven't done it before. There's always something out there trying to get you…you're the Keyblade master._

Sora ignored his answer. "…And now Kairi's involved. She's going to want to come with us, but she's not ready for this type of thing…"

That's not going to go well with her. Roxas said disapprovingly.

"Oh don't give me that. I told her I couldn't keep that promise. It's not like I left her behind on Destiny Islands …What if they go after her again Roxas? What if she gets hurt?"

If you keep sitting here moping then any of those 'what ifs' could very well come true.

Sora sighed. "Everything's going to be fine." He said aloud, trying to find the confidence that lacked in his tone of voice.

"Sora! There you are." Goofy's voice broke the silence. He took a spot beside the Keyblade master. "Me and Donald came to investigate what was making that tapping noise on the roof."

"We were sitting down wondering where you were, and Cid was going crazy over what that noise was." Donald added, climbing up onto the roof.

"A-hyuck! He reckoned it was some Heartless, but Yuffie said she knew the difference between a Heartless and a tree branch smacking against the rooftop…"

Sora pictured Cid and Yuffie yelling at each other, and he laughed lightly.

"Why are you wasting your time up here anyway?" Donald quacked. "We've got to get going!"

Sora nodded. "Alright, let's go say our goodbyes." He said regretfully.

Sora hopped off the roof and landed smoothly atop the stony ground. Conveniently enough, he dropped right in front of the very person he had been trying to avoid all day.

"There you are!" Kairi beamed after the surprise wore off.

Sora couldn't help act a little hesitant when he saw her. He presented her a false smile, but she saw right through it.

"What's wrong?" She asked concerned

"Oh, nothing." Sora lied.

"We don't have to leave right away." Kairi said, and Sora winced at her choice of pronoun. He cursed inwardly. She really thought she was coming.

She smiled. "So relax, okay? Come on," She grabbed his hand and pulled him along "Aerith and Cid are preparing a full course dinner for everyone. Everyone's gathered at Merlin's house, we should go join them. Everyone's there, well everyone except—"

Kairi stopped short as Donald and Goofy landed beside them. She laughed. "Great! Now we can all join the party."

Kairi was giddy, and she couldn't help herself. She had been so upset the day before, but now she felt happy. She was happy that she was with all her friends, enjoying their company and she felt included. It was different than the other times; she wasn't waiting for something to happen and she wasn't being held captive by some psychopath. She felt she had a keyblade for a reason, and this time she was going to help her friends.

She continued to pull Sora along as they entered Merlin's house with Donald and Goofy following. Sora felt a rush of warmth as soon as they entered. He never would have thought it was possible, but enough room had been made in the quaint little house for all of them. The furniture had been pushed aside to make way for a kitchen table big enough for 15 people.

He heard Selphie laugh, and saw her talking to Tifa and Axel. Axel said something back, and Tifa smacked him across the head in response. Moving his eyes around the crowd, he then saw Demyx, who was talking to Riku. The look on his friend's face told him that he was finding talking to Demyx just as weird as Sora found watching the two of them try to be friends. Leon sat on one of the couches leaned up against the wall next Cloud. Their expressions were more serious than most, but still somewhat relaxed, considering the two men were both known for never loosing sight of battle.

"There ya are Sora!" Yuffie grinned at him from across the room. "Where've you been?"

Donald answered for him. "He was on the roof watching for Heartless."

"Oh yeah? Did you see any?" She asked, a little too eager.

Sora shook his head.

Yuffie seemed satisfied by his answer. "Oh. Will you excuse me for a second?" She turned toward the kitchen. "Cid, old man! I told you it wasn't a Heartless!" She chided. "You owe me 20 munny!

"I never agreed to that!!" Cid's sounded from the kitchen.

Yuffie bit her lip and shook her head. Sora managed to catch the beginning of her sentence before turning towards Riku. "Always a sore loser…"

Sora sat down next to him and sighed as the topic of their conversation came to his ears.

"—but seriously, how many people can say their weapon helps you as a fighter and a musician?!" Demyx was moving his hands enthusiastically as he spoke to Riku. "When I first joined the Organization they all thought my weapon was a joke, but once they saw me in action, they never gave me grief about it again. My Sitar is awesome!" He finally noticed that Sora had sat down next to them and looked over. "Isn't that right, Sora? I mean, I know I lost that fight and all, but I'm sure it was no easy win."

Sora furrowed his eyebrow as questions of how he was able to have this conversation clouded his mind. "Uh…"

Riku chuckled and turned to Sora. "Relax," He whispered to his friend, "this is probably the last night for a while where we can chill like this…and probably the only time you'll find Organization members this friendly."

"Hey! That's former Organization member!" Demyx corrected, budding in. "So…? What about my sitar? Sora, you still haven't answered the question."

"Well…" Sora began hesitantly, trying the find the right words. "Now that I think about it, your sitar was like nothing I've ever come across before." Sora let himself laugh lightly.

"Hah! Damn right!" Demyx yelled. He stood up and walked toward the other former-Organization member in the room. "See, Axel? The keyblade master thinks my weapon is bad-ass!"

"That doesn't change my opinion of it…"

The brunette shook his head as the two argued but turned his head when Riku tapped his shoulder. Sora followed his pointed finger to see Kairi, who was walking toward them.

"We're going to have to tell her later, but for now, let's just enjoy this night." Riku whispered to him before Kairi got too close.

Sora nodded, and quickly switched his expression to a smile as Kairi sat down next to Riku. He let out a mental sigh of relief when her topic of conversation had nothing to do what Riku had said. "So," She began, "you find talking to Demyx and Axel just as weird as I do?"

"Yes!" Riku and Sora exclaimed in unison.

Kairi giggled. "I gotta admit though, it is kinda funny how things have turned out this way." Sora added. The three friends laughed.

Leon passed by the three keyblade wielders as they laughed about something Sora said. His mind was telling him that this happy celebration was only really prolonging the inevitable separation that would take place later that night…but, he also knew better than to break it up. I suppose they need this…

"—you know, this is probably the strangest group of people I've ever seen together in one place." Leon's head turned around to the familiar voice he had been trying to avoid all night. Among the many voices sounding in the room, Selphie's voice stood out above them all, giving Leon a deeper feeling of déjà vu with every syllable she spoke. Suddenly, he was sent on trip back into his memories, back to the life that was taken from him.

He was standing in the entrance of the Balamb garden cafeteria. Selphie was talking excitedly to a girl with dark raven hair, dressed in a soothing sky blue. The girl's hair swayed to the side as she turned her head and spotted Leon. She smiled, and her smile lit up the room. She raised her hand, and waved him to come over… "Squall, over here!"

As Selphie got to the punchline of her joke, she saw something at the corner of her eyes. While Tifa and Axel laughed, she noticed that it was the man with the scar.

"Hey Tifa…why's that Leon guy staring at us?" Selphie asked, making a point not stare back at the man who now seemed to be in trance.

"Huh?" Stopping her laughter, Tifa turned her head, and spotted Leon, staring just as Selphie had said. She smiled and waved her hand for him to come over. "Hey Leon!"

But instead of smiling back, Leon blinked slowly and lowered his head, bringing a hand to his forehead. He shook his head as if he was disappointed about something and walked off to sit back on the couch next to Cloud.

Tifa cocked her head to the side, but not terribly surprised by his behaviour. "Okay… what's his problem?"

There was a commotion coming from the kitchen and the conversations began to die down as the smell of food wafted into the room. "Hey everyone! Sit yourself around the table. Dinner's ready!" Aerith piped sweetly, while placing a platter of food on the table. Cid and Yuffie followed with glasses and beverages.

There was more chatter and laughter as everyone enjoyed the delicious meal. But toward the end, the room began to quiet down, because most people in the room knew the battle ahead was coming closer and closer.

Selphie sighed at the dwindling silence, as the last dish was handed out. "Talk about a buzz kill! Is the party over already?"

"We can't ignore the task at hand for any longer." Leon said. Tifa and Cid nodded as they stood up and began clearing the table. Quiet chatter began to pick up again as everyone worked together to get the place cleaned up.

After putting his share of dishes away, Leon walked over to the three keyblade wielders, who were usually never too far away from the other. He looked at Riku and Sora as he spoke. "You two ready to go?" He asked them.

Riku and Sora looked at each other and the immediately looked toward Kairi, with expressions of concern plastered on their faces. This was it. This was going to be the moment when they had to say it.

Leon was taken a back by their reaction. "So you're not—wait a minute, you've told her right?" He said, referring to Kairi.

"Told me what?" The red head asked in a suspicious tone as she neared them. She frowned at Sora's and Riku's guilty faces.

"WHAT?! No! I'm not staying here!" Kairi had her hands firmly placed on her hips as she yelled angrily at Sora and Riku.

Apparently Roxas had been right. Sora and Riku had taken Kairi aside somewhere quiet, so that they could explain their decision to have her remain on Radiant Garden. Both knew that she would be upset, but they never predicted just how upset she would be.

"No way! You can't! Its not fair, you're not leaving me behind again!" Kairi shouted.

"Come on Kai, don't be like that. It's too dangerous and you know it!"

"That didn't stop you when you were fourteen years old and half the size of your enemies. But it's different for me? Why Sora? Because I'm a girl? Huh? Just leave the dumb girl behind, is that it?!"

"You're not dumb! And its not like we're leaving you back on the island, you're—"

"—What about back on the island, huh?" Kairi interrupted. "I helped you two! You need me!"

Riku stood his ground and maintained a stern expression. "You need to stay safe."

Kairi turned toward him. "I don't care about being safe. You two are supposed to be my best friends…we're supposed to help each other."

"Then help us by staying here. We'll be fine." Riku said and his tone was becoming harsher now.

"You gave me this Riku!" She summoned her keyblade. "Remember?! I thought it was because you believed in me. I thought it meant that I could finally help you guys instead of waiting for you. Do you know what it's like to have to wait? To just wait, and be helpless to do anything? The constant worry about whether things are going work out or if…if…" The intensity in Kairi's eyes cooled down for a moment as she contemplated if. "…Look, I won't do it again, I just can't!"

Sora put a comforting hand on Kairi's shoulder. He was beginning to understand the source of her anger and frustration. "It's not like that this time." He said. "Your going to be with the Restoration Committee, you can help them, and they will keep you updated."

Kairi looked up at Sora, and her expression faltered. She couldn't stop her features from softening, but she shrugged off his hand anyway. "I want to help you Sora, you're always helping me…why can't I help you for once? Please, let me come with you…Each of us has a Keyblade…We're a team, aren't we?"

"We'll be fine without you. You need to stay out of our way."

Sora looked at Riku disbelievingly, and quickly turned to Kairi to see tears beginning to well up in her beautiful eyes. His mouth worked fast, stuttering out better words. "N—No Kairi! It's not like that! We just don't want you to get hurt!"

Kairi looked toward Riku, not hearing Sora's explanation, and saw that he was avoiding eye contact. That anger welled up inside her again at Riku's words but it softened as she saw Sora's sad eyes, with his mouth hung open as if he didn't know what to say.

"Fine." She said plainly, after a few seconds of silence. "Fine. If that's how you both feel, then I'll stay out of your way." She turned her back on them, and began to walk away. As much as she felt hurt by Riku's words, she couldn't make herself angry enough not to care about them.

She turned her head without stopping her pace. "Take of yourselves."

Sora's insides felt cold and hot at the same time. He wanted to run after her, to comfort her, to hold her, to make sure she was okay, but he thought better of it. It was better not to drag the argument. He took whatever comfort he could in knowing that she wouldn't be alone.

"Come on, let's go." Riku said, already turning to leave Merlin's house.

Sora was reminded of his friend's presence, and he rounded on him. "You didn't have say it like that, you know!"

"She'll get over it. It's better this way." Riku mumbled with his head cast down.

"That's not the point! You didn't have to tell her that way!" Sora yelled at his friend.

"We both know she wouldn't of let it go, unless we gave her reason not to come, I—"

"—But you didn't—!"

"—It's done with Sora. Don't make me feel worse about it than I already do."

The two friends, having ended the argument on a bitter note, walked the rest of the way to the Gummi ship in silence.

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**If you read this far, review!! It's my birthday tomorrow, reviews are great gifts tee hee…..**

**Thankyous! ^^**

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